Followers

Shane and Ben's triatholon this spring

Sophia now

Meeting Sophia for the first time two years ago

sophia at the orphanage

Shane's first marathon!

Sophia ready for the bus!

Our new house!

Young Life Capernaum Baltimore

Our camp trip to Rockbridge in July

Sophia at the River

Sophia's first time on the beach at the Rivah house!

Jesse and Mrs. King! at her wedding

Ben and Jesse took a road trip to Myrtle Beach to be at his teacher's (from the first year we had him) wedding. Anna and her now husband Kirby have been such a blessing to Jesse. Anna believed in him and saw in him who he really was. She was one of the main reasons we could make it through the first year of having Jesse with us. We miss them but were so glad they keep us in thier lives!

Our first family of 5 vacation!

We spent some time resting and playing at our aunt's house on the Potomac

Sophia in her cowboys outfit...for grandpa Z (dad is not happy!)

Prayer...

Getting more handsome by the day!

Jesse's new "passion"

We never thought we would see this! He is working hard though and we are proud of him!

"For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "yes" in Christ. And so, through him, the "Amen" is spoken by us, to the glory of God. 2 Corinthians 1:20

Our family!

"God is not waiting for you at the end of the rainbow and his blessings are not just over the horizon. You are IN the rainbow and IN his blessings all the time, whether you know it or not."-John K.

A father's love

We know this picture looks like Sophia is miserable, but this was just a moment captured that has spoken to us so much of God's love for us. All Ben could do at that moment was pray for his daughter. This part of this journey is a tough one for Sophia but is one where healing is happening. She has to go through this to get to the other side where she will be running and laughing in health! So much like our journey with Christ and how He works in our struggles to bring us to the places that are best for us. (she is actually not in pain here, just mad that she can get up!)

"Fear is at the root of all formsof exclusion, just as trust is at the root of all forms of inclusion."~Jean Vanier

Sophia and her pink boots

Does this look like a child with 66% oxygen levels??

Friday, September 19, 2008

Day four...

On the morning of surgery, I called the boys to let them know Sophia was in and doing fine. Jesse seemed a bit concerned when I told him the name of the doctors working on her...he said"umm, carissa, are they professionals?" I said yes. He said, "are you sure??" I reassured him we would only let professionals give Sophia her newly formed heart!!So, just to quickly update you...This morning they took out Sophia's breathing tube! Two days early!!They are going to get an x-ray soon to see if it can stay out. Pray it can!She is doing well but has a fever still and they are checking for infection this morning. That is something we do not want to happen! Her blood pressure is still off. We had a great treat that our nurse goes to our church and is excited to pray while she works with Sophia today! Ben's mom is leaving this morning and we are so sad! She has been an amazing comfort to us and the boys. What a gift to have moms who love us so well and are willing to drive down and jump in! Carissa's mom is here now with Kenji, and so Jesse is thrilled! On a side note, please pray for Shane. His aid was fired this week and we still don't know why. He doesn't know yet so pray for this process. We are not sure what we will do but we think we really want to change his school. We want to take a moment to say thank you so much for your letters, calls, and food!! We are so thankful for you all and have felts so surrounded by God as you have surrounded us.We are sorry we have not gotten back to everyone but we will do the best we can to when we get a chance. Thank you for choosing to be on this journey with us.

3 comments:

Dear Sophia-We love you so much. We are praying for you non-stop. we believe that God is busy writing your remarkable story and that this chapter is so important even though it is so hard. We trust that God has you in the palm of His hand is preparing you for beautiful things in the future. You are so special to us and we can't wait to hug you and kiss you. Love-Greg, Kit, Juliann and Riley

Sophia, Ben, Carissa, Shane & Jesse,We are so grateful for your friendship and inspired by your closeness and trust in God for all things. We are continuously praying for strength, healing, and a bright fighting spirit, (yet restful) for Sophia. For peace in God, trust, and strength for Carissa and Ben. And for peace, patience and understanding for the boys. I am sorry we are not around more now, but you are all in our daily thoughts and prayers and we promise to come see you all soon! xoxoxoxo. GET WELL SOPHIA we love you! Love, Ali & Mtube